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STORIES THAT SHAPE US Collection

Fiction & Literature

Fiction & Literature

The novels and literary works that CEOs, creators, and visionaries name as the stories that changed how they see the world.

The Council

The Literary
Tastemakers

Curated by the world’s most influential readers & thinkers.

48 books in Fiction & Literature

35 books in Fiction & Literature

21 books in Fiction & Literature

All 684 Fiction & Literature Books

1984

Steve Jobs
Steve Jobs
Richard Branson
Richard Branson
Jordan Peterson
Jordan Peterson

Read by Steve Jobs, Richard Branson, Jordan Peterson and 9 others

The Lord of the Rings

Peter Thiel
Peter Thiel
Elon Musk
Elon Musk
Reid Hoffman
Reid Hoffman

Read by Peter Thiel, Elon Musk, Reid Hoffman and 5 others

Atlas Shrugged

Peter Thiel
Peter Thiel
Elon Musk
Elon Musk
Steve Jobs
Steve Jobs

Read by Peter Thiel, Elon Musk, Steve Jobs and 5 others

The Alchemist

LeBron James
LeBron James
Daniel Ek
Daniel Ek
Pharrell Williams
Pharrell Williams

Read by LeBron James, Daniel Ek, Pharrell Williams and 5 others

The Great Gatsby

Wong Kar Wai
Wong Kar Wai
Neil deGrasse Tyson
Neil deGrasse Tyson
Ralph Lauren
Ralph Lauren

Read by Wong Kar Wai, Neil deGrasse Tyson, Ralph Lauren and 3 others

The Fountainhead

Donald Trump
Donald Trump
Larry Ellison
Larry Ellison
Chip Wilson
Chip Wilson

Read by Donald Trump, Larry Ellison, Chip Wilson and 3 others

Dune

Tim Ferriss
Tim Ferriss
Jeff Bezos
Jeff Bezos
Hans Zimmer
Hans Zimmer

Read by Tim Ferriss, Jeff Bezos, Hans Zimmer and 2 others

Siddhartha

Tim Ferriss
Tim Ferriss
Naval Ravikant
Naval Ravikant
Bryan Johnson
Bryan Johnson

Read by Tim Ferriss, Naval Ravikant, Bryan Johnson and 2 others

The Three-Body Problem

Barack Obama
Barack Obama
Mark Zuckerberg
Mark Zuckerberg
Tobias Lütke
Tobias Lütke

Read by Barack Obama, Mark Zuckerberg, Tobias Lütke and 2 others

The Brothers Karamazov

Albert Einstein
Albert Einstein
Sigmund Freud
Sigmund Freud
Jordan Peterson
Jordan Peterson

Read by Albert Einstein, Sigmund Freud, Jordan Peterson and 2 others

Brave New World

Jordan Peterson
Jordan Peterson
Siddhartha Mukherjee
Siddhartha Mukherjee
Ben Shapiro
Ben Shapiro

Read by Jordan Peterson, Siddhartha Mukherjee, Ben Shapiro and 2 others

Exhalation

Tim Ferriss
Tim Ferriss
Mark Manson
Mark Manson
Sean Carroll
Sean Carroll

Read by Tim Ferriss, Mark Manson, Sean Carroll and 1 others

The Consensus

Most Endorsed

1
12Endorsed
#1 Most Endorsed

1984

A dystopian novel set in a totalitarian superstate where the Party exerts total control over its citizens through mass surveillance and the Thought Police. The story follows Winston Smith, a worker at the Ministry of Truth, as he attempts to maintain his individuality and search for truth amidst state-mandated propaganda. The work examines how the manipulation of language and historical records can be used as tools of political oppression.

Steve Jobs
Steve Jobs
Richard Branson
Richard Branson
Jordan Peterson
Jordan Peterson
Chip Wilson
Chip Wilson

12 independent endorsements

2

The Lord of the Rings

The Fellowship of the Ring / The Two Towers / The Return of the King

8 endorsements
3

Atlas Shrugged

Set in a dystopian United States, the story follows railroad executive Dagny Taggart as she navigates a crumbling economy where the nation's most productive citizens are mysteriously disappearing. The novel explores the philosophical conflict between rational self-interest and collectivism through the search for a legendary figure named John Galt.

8 endorsements
4

The Alchemist

A Fable About Following Your Dream

8 endorsements
Setting aside the political football this book evokes, this book champions the entrepreneurial drive to invent products and run a great company. This includes rewarding employees who are responsible, who do not complain, who move to action and think for themselves as partners and equals.
Chip Wilson
Chip Wilsonlululemon Founder & Philanthropist
For me, it's relaxing honestly. You spend so much preparation for the games, sometimes you just need to get away from it for a little bit. The reading has helped me get away from the game a little bit, and I'm able zero in once I'm done and get ready for the games.
LeBron James
LeBron JamesNBA All-Time Leading Scorer
One of those books that you read as a young man and become intoxicated with, yet it is a book to be savored over the course of a life. It was written with great mischief and humor, but full of empathy for the outsider struggling to imagine a purpose in this world.
Cillian Murphy
Cillian MurphyAcademy Award-Winning Actor
Broken Country by Clare Leslie Hall is an unforgettable story of love, loss, and the choices that shape our lives…but it's also a masterfully crafted mystery that will keep you guessing until the very last page. Seriously, that ending?! I did not see it coming.
Reese Witherspoon
Reese WitherspoonOscar-winning Actress & Hello Sunshine Founder
An absolutely stunning achievement and one of the most heartbreaking books I have ever read. Dark, fiercely funny, compassionate, and unashamedly Irish. Its depiction of a young boy's descent into isolation and madness in small town Ireland has never left me.
Cillian Murphy
Cillian MurphyAcademy Award-Winning Actor
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